UNC-UVa: Postgame Quotes + Audio

Inside Carolina's postgame coverage includes quotes and audio from head coach Butch Davis, Hakeem Nicks, T.J. Yates and Kentwan Balmer, who spoke to the media following the 22-20 loss to Virginia.

(Inside Carolina audio is available to IC premium subscribers. To listen to the audio, you'll need an updated version of Windows Media Player - click here to download the software.)

Butch Davis

(13:48)

On the turnovers:
"Unfortunately, we are not talented enough at this stage to win games when you lose the turnover margin. You can't have three turnovers and not create turnovers because it puts such an enormous burden on your offense to try and score with a limited number of possessions and it puts a tremendous of burden on your defense to have to go out and play maybe more plays than you did."

On the slow start:
"For the first time this season, we got off to a slow start offensively. We struggled. In part, you have to give Virginia a lot of credit. They are a good football team, especially defensively. They have some really physical guys that make it difficult to run the football. When they are fresh and rested, Chris Long is as good a pass rusher as probably is playing in college football today."

On Nicks' 53-yard touchdown pass:
"Hakeem Nick's one individual catch was probably the best single individual play of great effort that maybe I've seen in 33 years in the game. I would have bet a lot of money that ball was overthrown. I was shocked that he caught it. Then I was even more amazed that the great individual run after the catch to get it into the end zone."

On learning to win:
"Every single week the kids do the things our coaches are asking them to do. They trying to play hard, trying to hustle, trying to get to the ball, trying to make plays, trying to have faith, trying to put themselves at the end of ball games in a position to give ourselves a chance to win...

"I love [this football team] and I'm proud of them. They're young and they are going to make some mistakes. If they make mistakes and they're giving the best effort they can, then we are going to have to live with it ."

On the field goal that was reversed via instant replay:
"It's my understanding that every single play is potentially reviewable… I guess the field goal falls into the category of all plays are potentially challengeable and reviewable… I guess they looked at it and said it was good. It's pretty much out of your hands."

On the team's tackling:
"I didn't think we particularly tackled well again today. It was moderately better than at times a week ago."

On Cedric Peerman's performance:
"He's pretty good. He's big and strong. He moves the pile. They have a good scheme that allows him to do that because they spread you out all over the field. They are getting multiple wide receivers and they spread you out from sideline to sideling to create some natural running lanes."

T.J. Yates

(7:23)

On the use of the hurry-up offense:
"I thought we executed our two-minute drill very well this game. We kept the defense on their heels a little bit and we were able to capitalize on that."

On the quick scores:
"We like to come out there and hit them quick, not giving them a chance to catch a breath. We like to keep coming at them and coming at them. I think it worked really well this game."

On Chris Long's interception:
"He didn't really rush that much on that play. He just jumped up out of nowhere. That was a heck of a play. The guy is really good."

On the difficulties with the clock not working properly:
"I think it showed a lot about our team. Not even knowing what the time was, we did things pretty well. It was pretty frustrating not knowing how much time there was and especially not having the big clock the entire game."

Hakeem Nicks

(3:08)

On his 53-yard touchdown:
"I [saw] the ball up there and I went up and made a great play. Like Coach [Davis] always says, great players make great plays when we need them. So I feel like I had to go up and make a great play."

On the sideline atmosphere after that touchdown:
"It was like a breeze, because the momentum changed and it helped us out a lot. But we just still have a couple of mental errors that we need to fix up."

On his feelings on the game:
"We really feel like we beat ourselves. Virginia played very hard, but we had some mental mistakes that we need to fix in practice this week – protecting the ball, the quarterback going through his reads – mental stuff like that."

Kentwan Balmer

(3:01)

On how close this team was to winning:
My hat goes off to Virginia. They executed, but we shot ourselves in the foot. Mental mistakes, we didn't get a fumble, penalties, missed assignments – we shot ourselves in the foot."

On the overturned field goal:
"No comment."

On how to create more turnovers:
"Just fly around and do what the coaches tell us. They always put us in position to make plays and when we're not in those positions, it costs us. I think they had five plays for almost 200 yards when guys weren't in the right spots, and it cost us."